


i'll be the one to hold you

by thegrayness



Series: with our hands over our hearts [8]
Category: Schitt's Creek
Genre: Gift Giving, Just full of nothing but these two in love, M/M, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-17
Updated: 2019-08-17
Packaged: 2020-09-02 14:11:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,422
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20277187
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thegrayness/pseuds/thegrayness
Summary: David was expecting a delivery, was the thing. For Patrick. It was going to be perfect and David couldn’t believe he hadn't thought of it sooner.--David has a surprise for Patrick, but things, of course, don't go to plan.





	i'll be the one to hold you

**Author's Note:**

> This is incredibly dumb and I wrote it to avoid writing tentacle porn so here it is. 
> 
> Prompt from [this_is_not_nothing](https://archiveofourown.org/users/this_is_not_nothing/pseuds/this_is_not_nothing): "David gets an electric kettle for the store." And I escalated it, as one does. 
> 
> You know, at this point I'm just picking any random song lyrics and throwing them in the Work Title field. I'm going to see the Backstreet Boys tomorrow so HERE is a title from [The One](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HZYrEz0mxts).

David was struggling to contain his excitement. He thought, for sure, that his weird energy was going to give him away to Patrick as they worked the sales floor with their usual cohesion. He’d noticed, though, when they’d arrived in the late dawn light of winter (8am), that Patrick was acting a little...off. _ Must be distracted about quarterly tax things_, David thought. 

David was expecting a delivery, was the thing. For Patrick. It was going to be perfect and David couldn’t believe he hadn't thought of it sooner. It was inexpensive and simple and perfect for his husband this time of year. David jumped at the sound of every truck or van that rumbled by and immediately checked to see if Patrick noticed his odd behavior. But—nope. Patrick was dutifully restocking the body milk and helpfully chatting with customers to upsell the new bergamot body scrub with the bestselling massage oil. Then he was fastidiously checking inventory and obsessively straightening the sea mist toners—even though they were clearly all facing forward—kind of like David did when he was nervous or anxious.

_ Oh no. _ What was Patrick nervous about? Was David giving off nervous vibes? David walked over and wrapped his arms around Patrick's waist from behind, pressing a soft kiss to the back of his neck, nosing into the too-long hair. Patrick didn’t cut it as often in the winter, some kind of pretend nod to the cold Canada weather even though he never went out the door without a hat shoved down over his ears. 

“Hey,” David murmured, shoving his nose partly under the collar of Patrick’s sweater. 

Patrick’s hands covered David’s forearms and gave a little squeeze. “Hi, babe.” David can hear Patrick’s smile in those two words. 

“Mm, just wanted to—”

The slide of a delivery van door stole David’s attention. He stood up straight at the same time Patrick pulled out of his arms and took a step towards the sound. 

“Oh, I’ll grab that!” Patrick said loudly, already halfway to the door. 

“I’ve got it, babe,” David insisted, _ super casually_, as he grabbed the sleeve of Patrick’s sweater to pull him back. 

“It’s okay, it’s cold out—you stay here.” He stopped David with hands firmly on his shoulders, and goddammit, Patrick _ knew _what that did to him. So David stayed and watched Patrick grab… two? Two packages from the driver and hurry back in from the cold. Patrick unceremoniously dropped the smaller one on the counter and headed straight back behind the curtain with the other—much, much bigger—box. 

_ Weird_, but David didn’t have time to dwell on it. He rushed over to the box and lifted it gingerly as if the contents were fragile. He made quick work of the packaging with the handy box cutter Patrick kept in the drawer next to the register. He vaguely heard Patrick struggling in the back. It sounded like he was unpacking inventory, so maybe his delivery was a sample from a vendor that had arrived. Patrick had been, David recalled from their vendor visit last week, somewhat overly excited about the hand-crafted camping plates and other kitchen-y accouterments that David thought should just stay in a real kitchen. 

Patrick made a muffled _ oomph _ sound. “You okay, babe?” David called, peering around the half-opened curtain.

“Fine! I’m—fine! Don’t—keep watch for customers, I’m fine!” Patrick’s voice was about three octaves higher than normal, and David wanted to know what _ that _ was about, but Karen walked in then, and within minutes David was selling her an extra container of the bath salts. 

By the time the last customer in a brief string of customers left, David was kind of tired, and more than kind of hungry for lunch. Patrick _ still _ hadn’t emerged from the back room, and it was lucky that the customers weren’t annoying or difficult, or David would have words for him about hiding in the back all morning. David had stored his package under the counter, so he flipped the sign to closed, locked the door, and scooped it up before heading to the back. 

“Honey?” He called but stopped two feet inside the curtain. Patrick was standing there—cheeks pink, huge grin—next to a sleek, shiny and..._ hot _espresso machine topped with the biggest bow David had ever seen outside of a car commercial. The thing nearly covered the whole appliance, but David would recognize that chrome anywhere. “Wha—babe?” He knew his eyes were wide, and he couldn’t take his gaze off the thing. 

Suddenly the gift in his hands seemed… _ less_. He dropped it onto the work table they had back there for labeling, keeping his eyes locked on the machine.

“Do you like it?” Patrick was practically gleeful. “It was on sale, David,” he whispered, moving in close. 

David snorted. “I’d make fun of you for having a sale kink but I definitely have a shiny appliance kink so I think we’re a good match.” Patrick laughed and brushed the back of his fingers over David’s cheek. 

“Yes, I remember when we got the new stove,” Patrick said, dropping his voice so David had to lean closer. David put his arms around Patrick’s very nice shoulders—like he always did, like he loved to do—and kissed him, hot and sweet at once, squeezing him closer. 

“I love it,” David replied finally, dropping a playful kiss to his husband’s nose. “I love _ you_.” 

Patrick smiled his _ Can you believe we get to have this _smile, and they spent the rest of their lunch break making out next to a box of hand creams that eventually ended up toppled over on the floor. David’s morning delivery lay forgotten on the work table. 

Later, during closing, they were both in the backroom finishing their assigned tasks. Patrick was tidying up the work table and David was watching him fondly, enjoying the way the muscles in his back could just barely be seen beneath his apparently very thin sweater, the way his shoulders shifted when he lifted a heavy box, the way his ass looked in those jeans David bought him when he bent over to grab the pen he dropped half-accidentally. (David could tell, Patrick was not subtle.) 

He watched as it happened in slow motion, watched Patrick reach for the box David had received earlier that day, watched him open the flaps with a quick flick of his wrist. David stumbled forward with a noise of protest that didn’t stop Patrick from lifting the item out of the box. 

David let out another squawk he’d never admit to and snatched the gift out of his hands. “David?” Patrick asked, now holding the empty box. David groaned.

“It’s nothing, really.” He turned to hold it out of Patrick’s view and reach. 

Patrick brow furrowed in concern. “Then why can’t I see it?” He reached for it with his free hand, gently prying it from David’s hands. David let him, hoping to get the whole thing over with anyway. He sighed.

“It’s an electric kettle… ” David explained. “I got it as a surprise because you love tea‚ plus we just got that new shipment from Mr. Hockley.” 

“David,” Patrick began, setting down the empty box so he could grab David’s hand. “This is incredibly thoughtful. Were you… not going to give it to me?” Patrick’s sad eyes. _ Ugh. _

“Well. Maybe not? I don’t know, you surprised me with the espresso machine,” David pulled his hand out of Patrick’s to gesture to the appliance, “the same day I was going to give you this sad tea kettle,” he pointed at the gift in Patrick’s hand, “and so I thought maybe I would save it for another day. Like, a more _ average _ day where this could be the _ highlight_.” 

“David.” Patrick grinned. “You know that every day is a highlight with you.”

David groaned in disgust. “_Ew_, that was _ terrible, _ I’m taking my gift _ back_, thanks so much,” David complained, squirming away when Patrick made kissy noises in his direction. Patrick caught him, though, setting the kettle aside and wrapping David up tight so they were pressed together chest to knees. 

“Thank you for the gift, David. It’s lovely and it will be nice in the afternoons when you are hopped up on espresso and I need something to balance you out,” Patrick murmured, lips brushing David’s. David opened his mouth to argue the _ hopped up on espresso _comment, but Patrick kissed him, cutting off all protests—caffeinated or otherwise. 


End file.
